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HR 125: Letter to the Chairman from the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
Thank you for your letter of 22 January about the current situation in Sri Lanka.
We very much share the Committee's concerns over the humanitarian crisis in the conflict area in northern Sri Lanka. The Prime Minister made clear in Parliament on 14 January that he wanted to see a ceasefire. In my statements of 29 and 31 January I called for a humanitarian ceasefire and repeated this call when I spoke by telephone to President Rajapakse of Sri Lanka on 30 January. In the topical debate on Sri Lanka in Parliament on 5 February Bill Rammell again called for a humanitarian ceasefire.
The continuing loss of civilian lives, including through attacks on the medical facilities in the conflict area, the suicide bombing that killed 29 civilians who had left the conflict area on 9 February, and the killing of Tamils who have apparently been trying to leave the conflict area, is a source of great distress for all us who want to see a peaceful future for Sri Lanka.
Over 30,000 people have now been able to leave the conflict area. But credible reports indicate that a substantial number of people remain caught in the shrinking area where fighting continues. They must all be considered at risk. Others have been wounded and are in desperate need of medical treatment.
Humanitarian corridors must now be set up and respected by both sides so that civilians have the opportunity to move away from the conflict area and adequate humanitarian assistance can be safely delivered. Wounded civilians must receive the treatment they so urgently need. The UK continues to urge all parties to abide by their obligations under international humanitarian law.
We have also been urging the Sri Lankan Government to launch a sustained drive to make progress on reaching a political solution to the conflict that fully addresses the concerns of all communities in Sri Lanka - Sinhalese, Tamils and Muslims. Whilst we recognise the Government's need to root out terrorism we have always been clear that there can be no military solution to the conflict. Sustainable peace in Sri Lanka can only come about through a fully inclusive political process.
You will have seen that the Prime Minister appointed Des Browne as his Special Envoy for Sri Lanka on 12 February. To date the Sri Lankan Government has rejected the appointment of an envoy.* This is disappointing news, but we continue to discuss the matter with the Sri Lankan Government and are hopeful that Des Browne will soon be in a position to play a full role. Our intention is that he will focus his efforts on the immediate humanitarian situation and on encouraging the Sri Lankan Government to launch a sustained drive to reach a lasting political settlement to the conflict.
You also mentioned human rights in your letter. We continue to be concerned about the use of child soldiers by paramilitary groups and the reports of abductions, disappearances and extra-judicial killings of civilians. Over the past 6 weeks media freedom has been under particular threat. A senior editor, Lasantha Wickrematunge, was murdered in Colombo in broad daylight, another was assaulted, and the broadcasting centre of an independent TV station was destroyed by a well armed gang. No one has yet been charged with any of these terrible crimes. Over recent months, many prominent figures in the media and civil society have left Sri Lanka in fear for their lives.
Prosecutions for such attacks are rare, feeding a culture of impunity. The Sri Lankan Government has a direct responsibility to tackle all human rights violations. Only by ensuring that full and thorough investigations into such violations are followed by successful prosecutions of those responsible will the Government strengthen the rule of law and tackle this corrosive culture of impunity. Alongside other international partners, we are urging the Government to take clear-cut and rigorous action to bring the perpetrators of human rights violations to justice.
19 February 2009
Letter to the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs from the Chairman
SRI LANKA
At its meeting yesterday the Foreign Affairs Committee discussed recent developments in Sri Lanka. My colleagues and I are very concerned about reports of loss of life, human rights abuses and a growing humanitarian crisis as the Sri Lankan government attempts to defeat militarily the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
We have noted the contents of the Written Ministerial Statement which you issued yesterday. We note in particular that HM Government has not called for a ceasefire between the Sri Lankan government forces and the LTTE. This approach contrasts markedly with the position taken by HMG in relation to the recent conflict in Gaza. The Committee would be grateful if you could clarify why this is the case.
22 January 2009
* Despite phone conversations with me and meetings with the HC in which the President said he would work with the Envoy. |